Focus Ireland, the organisation representing homeless people believes housing problems are likely to get worse, not better.
The Focus Ireland annual report indicates that housing waiting lists increased by more than a third between 1999 and 2001.
It is an increasingly common sight on the streets of our city, homeless people bedding down for the night in shop doorways or wherever they can take shelter.
The Focus Ireland report says that there are now six thousand people sleeping rough on the streets of our cities every night, an increase of sixty per cent on the figure three years ago. With housing lists growing by the day, Focus Ireland says that the homeless problem is only going to get worse. Over the last two years, the number of people relying on the state to provide them with a permanent home has risen to 54,000. Focus Ireland believes that this rise is due to the failure of the government to keep faith with their housing promises.
CEO of Focus Ireland Declan Jones says that we are facing a situation of cuts by stealth. The Department of the Environment have told the local authorities that they cannot proceed with housing construction programmes, specifically in relation to social housing.
Junior Minister Noel Ahern says that the government remains committed to addressing the housing situation pointing out that government expenditure this year on local authority and social housing has increased by €200 million.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 27 August 2002. The reporter is Peter Leonard.
